1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to electrically-based, and/or optically-based, interrogation devices for use in detecting, quantifying, qualifying, or otherwise sensing, particles carried by a fluid. It is particularly directed to a portable, table-top, stand-alone interrogation device for use in such particle characterization.
2. State of the Art
Pioneering work in particle detection by measuring impedance deviation caused by particles flowing through a small aperture between two containers of electrically conductive fluid is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,656,508 to W. H, Coulter. Coulter's name is now associated with the principle of particles causing a change in electric impedance as they occlude a portion of the aperture. Since publication of his patent, considerable effort has been devoted to developing and refining sensing devices operating under the Coulter principle. Relevant US patents include U.S. Pat. No. 5,376,878 to Fisher, U.S. Pat. No. 6,703,819 to Gascoyne et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,437,551 to Krulevitch et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,426,615 to Mehta, U.S. Pat. No. 6,169,394 to Frazier et al., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,454,945 and 6,488,896 to Weigl et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,431 to Holl et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 6,794,877 to Blomberg et al. Patent application 2002/117,517 to Unger et al. is also relevant. Each above-referenced document is hereby incorporated by reference, as though set forth herein in their entireties, for their disclosures of relevant technology and structure employed in various sensor arrangements.
Flow cytometry is a well established technique that is used to determine certain physical and chemical properties of microscopic particles by sensing certain optical properties of the particles. Many books and articles are available detailing aspects of this useful investigational tool. For example, operational principles of, and procedures for use of, modern cytometers are set forth in “Practical Flow Cytometry” by Howard M. Shapiro, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by this reference. Flow cytometry is currently used in a wide variety of applications including hematology, immunology, genetics, food science, pharmacology, microbiology, parasitology and oncology.
In flow cytometry, microscopic particles entrained in a carrier fluid are typically arranged in single-file inside a core stream using hydrodynamic focusing (sheath fluid flow). The particles are then individually interrogated by an optical detection system. The interrogation typically includes directing a light beam from a radiation source, such as a laser, transversely across the focused stream of single-file particles. The light beam is scattered by each particle to produce a scatter profile. The scatter profile may be analyzed by measuring the light intensity at both small and larger scatter angles. Certain physical and/or chemical properties of each particle can then be determined from the scatter profile. Currently available flow cytometers are generally large, permanently-installed devices, and can not reasonably be considered to be portable devices.
It is also known to apply fluorescing markers to selected particles of interest prior to processing such particles in a cytometer. For example, particles such as blood cells can be “tagged” with fluorescent molecules by using conjugated monoclonal antibodies. The wavelength of the radiation source (typically a laser), is matched to the excitation wavelength of the fluorescing molecule marker. The tagged particles fluoresce in the cytometer when excited by the transversely oriented laser beam. The fluorescence given off by the excited particle can be detected by an appropriately configured detector, which is conventionally mounted transverse to the path of the particles in the interrogation portion of the cytometer. Therefore, cells tagged with fluorescing markers can be easily detected for counting, or other data manipulation.
Unfortunately, flow cytometers are undesirably complex and expensive pieces of equipment. Care must be taken to ensure the machine is set up correctly, and properly calibrated. It would be an advance to provide a robust, inexpensive apparatus that can be used to promote single-file particle travel through an optically based interrogation zone to promote rapid processing of a plurality of different particle-bearing fluid samples.
While considerable progress has been made in the construction and use of microfluidic interrogation devices incorporating sheathed fluid flow, a need remains for microfluidic interrogation devices that are less expensive, reduced in size to be portable e.g. easily moved between sites of operation, and permit enhanced manipulation of a fluid sample and/or data obtained therefrom. It would be an improvement to provide a sensitive and accurate interrogation device structured to couple with a single-file particle alignment element that is sufficiently robust as to permit its use to serially interrogate a plurality of samples. Desirably, such an improved particle alignment element would be removable from the interrogation device, and even potentially exchanged for a different alignment element having different interrogation capabilities. It would be another improvement to provide an interrogation device structured to permit interrogation of a fluid sample having a pre-defined volume, which can be a sub-set of an over-size fluid sample that was extracted from a bulk container of fluid and loaded into the interrogation device. Another improvement would provide an interrogation device that can operate as a portable, stand-alone test-and-display station. Still further improvements would provide verification of sample presence at one or more desired position in the device, verify particle sensor functionality (or health) and/or fluid sample integrity, and permit estimation of the flow rate and/or volumetric particle count of an interrogated fluid sample.